U.S. Treeplanters Sue Forest Companies

Here is an interesting item gleaned from the New York Times involving U.S. immigrant silvicultural labourers suing major American forest companies.. The workers, most of them Mexican, allege they were treated illegally by their contractor employers. But the class action suit for wage violations which could involve millions in backpay is against the forest companies implying they are responsible for the actions of their contractors.

B.C. is some distance from Arkansas. And fortunately for workers here there is not a lot to compare with the American model in terms of how employees are generally treated in B.C. Nevertheless, even though we write our own laws in Canada, some of the legal themes playing out south of the border will have some relevance here. Perhaps more as examples of things to avoid.